BAYBORO — Candidate interest is at a peak in the town of Oriental, but not so much for Arapahoe.

The Friday closing of Pamlico County’s eight municipal election filings for the Nov. 5 general election found 13 candidates for five Oriental commissioner seats and the county’s only contested mayor’s race.

But, in Arapahoe, the available seats fell one candidate short among commissioners and the Pamlico County Board of Elections has extended filing for that race until Friday at noon. If enough candidates are not on the ballot, the final board seat will go to a write-in candidate who is willing to accept the job.

The Arapahoe commissioner race is the only one receiving an extension.

A total of 23 filing candidates Thursday and Friday avoided extensions in some other towns.

Other than the contested races for Oriental commissioners and mayor, no other town has a contested race.

Incumbent Oriental Mayor Bill Sage filed Friday and will be opposed by Lori Wagner, a former commissioner who also worked at town hall.

Among the crowded field to take one of the five town board seats, the new candidates filing Thursday or Friday include Martha Good, retired Town Manager Bob Maxbauer, Charles Overcash, Benjamin Cox, Timothy Rogers and incumbent Barbara Venturi.

Three Vandemere commissioner candidates filed in the past two days — David DeSalvo, Steven Lacy and Amanda Finch.

Alliance, where the top commissioner candidate vote-getter is elected mayor, completed its needed allotment of candidates with the filing of Frank Willis, Frank Cuthrell, Louis Daniels and Harry Brooks.

Elections Director Lisa Bennett said Oriental is the only town that has applied for and will have early One Stop voting this year. The elections board will determine at a later date if those ballots will be cast at the elections office in Bayboro or at a voting place in Oriental.

Grantsboro is the only Pamlico County town without an election this year, after its board approved four-year terms.

For information, call the Pamlico County Elections office at 745-4821.

Charlie Hall can be reached at 252-635-5667 or Charlie.hall@newbernsj.com.